Risotto with asparagus cream, crispy Parmesan cheese and caramelized onion

Risotto with asparagus is anathema for gray things, an invincible precursor of beautiful moments.
My favorite is this here, with the white asparagus cream – those from the Thursday farmer’s market. Then I put in it some green asparagus, crunchy under my teeth, far be it to be hurted. And also some caramelized red onion because this is the risotto that never have to ask. In this riot of super aromatic but still sweet vegetables, the role of crispy Parmesan is fundamental: it breaks the frequency with a wave of flavor that is a boom in salinity.

All very nice. But to make a tree you need seed, and to make a risotto you need rice.
This risotto was very lucky because he was given a special ingredient, an excellent quality raw material: the rice of our friends from Meracinque (go and visit them on their website). The five mistresses who have decided to put their hands, their hearts, their heads and souls at the service of the ground to give us wonderful micronatural rice. Cause a grain of rice is a small thing, but a forkful of risotto causes great happiness.

This morning’s sentence on the yogi tea tag say:

may your inner self be secure and happy

and if we are what we eat, after this risotto I can sleep serene dreams.

Risotto with asparagus cream, crispy Parmesan cheese and caramelized onion – the recipe

INGREDIENTS (serves 6)

for the white asparagus cream

• 500 g of white asparagus (possibly those of the farmer near your home – because their taste will certainly have nothing to do with those of the supermarket)
• half a yellow onion
• 200 g of ricotta cheese
• 500 ml of vegetable broth
• 20 g of butter
• extra virgin olive oil, salt and ground black pepper q.s.

for the risotto with asparagus

• 500 g of Meracinque Micronatural Carnaroli Brown Rice
• 250 g of green asparagus tips
• 150 ml of white wine
• 1 liter of vegetable broth
• Grated Parmesan q.s.
• half red onion + 1 tablespoon of whole cane sugar
• Extra virgin olive oil, salt and black pepper q.s.

PROCESS

How to make white asparagus cream

1. Start by washing the asparagus. Then remove a centimeter from the lower end, set the tips aside and peel the stems with a potato peeler.
2. Fry the onion in a drizzle of oil and butter, add the stems cutted into rounds, and cook for a couple of minutes. Cover with the broth, season with salt and pepper and cook for a quarter of an hour.
3. Remove from heat and blend with a blender. Once you have obtained a cream, add the ricotta and blend it again together with a drizzle of oil.

How to make risotto with asparagus

1. Wash the green asparagus, peel the stems and set aside the tips. Cut the stems.
2. Toast the rice in a large saucepan together with a drizzle of oil. After a couple of minutes, when the rice have been “singing” for a while, sautè with the wine over a high heat.
3. Add the green asparagus, cover with a few ladles of broth. Continue stirring and add stock for 10 minutes. Also add the tips of green asparagus and those of white asparagus previously kept aside.
4. Meanwhile, thinly slice the red onion and sauté in a non-stick pan with a drizzle of oil and sugar. Remove from heat once caramelized and add salt.
5. Prepare the crispy Parmesan: in a very hot non-stick pan pour the grated cheese in a thin layer; you will see that it will melt and will soon begin to gold. Once crunchy remove from heat and let cool.
6. As soon as the rice is cooked add the cream of white asparagus and give the risotto just a minute to make all the ingredients fall in love with each other.
7. Remove from heat, stir in grated Parmesan. Serve the amazing risotto with asparagus cream.
   Finish the dish with the crunchy Parmesan wafer crumbled on the surface and the caramelized onion.

Taste it and call it magic.